Springbok captain Jean de Villiers has recovered from the knee injury which kept him out of the June Tests and is back in the national squad for the forthcoming Castle Lager Rugby Championship.
De Villiers is one of six players returning from injury after missing the entire or a part of the Castle Lager Incoming Series. The others are Tendai Mtawarira (prop), Frans Malherbe (prop), Eben Etzebeth (lock), Patrick Lambie (flyhalf/fullback) and Damian de Allende (centre).
DHL WP star De Allende, who was forced to withdraw from the squad in June because of a knee ligament injury, and scrumhalf Cobus Reinach are the only two uncapped players in the 30-man Springbok squad.
The national selectors have also retained four debutants from the June series for the Castle Lager Rugby Championship – Cornal Hendricks (wing), Teboho ‘Oupa’ Mohoje (loose forward), Lood de Jager (lock) and Handré Pollard (flyhalf).
“It’s great to have Jean back to lead the side in the Castle Lager Rugby Championship,” said Springbok coach Heyneke Meyer, who selected five DHL Western Province players in his 30-man squad.
“Victor Matfield and Jan Serfontein both did superbly well in his absence, but he is our captain and I’m sure he will slot back into the side without any difficulty. The same goes for Eben, Frans and Patrick, all of whom have been part of the squad before.
“We will medically assess all the players in the squad in Johannesburg next week. This will not only include the players who missed the June Tests because of injury, but also someone such as Mtawarira, who has been out of action for a while. We will deal with every player and his needs individually.”
Commenting on the inclusion of Hendricks, a recent gold medal winner in sevens at the Commonwealth Games in Scotland, Mohoje, De Jager and Pollard, Meyer said: “These players have impressed from the first minute they joined us. This is a step up for all of them, but that is the kind of challenge we thrive on.
“It’s never easy cutting a squad down in size and we’re fortunate that we have a number of experienced players who will be on stand-by should their services be needed.”
Meyer said he is looking forward to the Castle Lager Rugby Championship, which kicks-off on Saturday, August 16 when Australia host New Zealand in Sydney and the Springboks take on Argentina at Loftus Versfeld in Pretoria (kick-off at 17h00).
The Springbok squad will gather in Johannesburg for a pre-competition camp from August 4 to 8 and then again on August 10 in Pretoria, where they will prepare for the Test against Argentina.
“We’ve been steadily improving over the past two years but another step-up is needed this season,” said Meyer.
“It’s been a theme for us since the start of the season and we must simply keep on accelerating in the coming two months. We’ve set ourselves some goals for the Castle Lager Rugby Championship and we’ll have to be focused and switched on from the moment we get together in Johannesburg.
“Winning matches and scoring tries remain foremost in our minds. During the four matches in June, we scored 23 tries, which we were very happy with. I think we can be proud of the rugby we played against Wales and Scotland, but that is in the past now and we have a new competition to get ready for.
“There are many good things we can build on from the June series, but also some things we need to work on if we’re going to be competitive in the coming months. It’s a challenge we relish though and I can’t wait to get going.”
Two senior Springboks who will play in Japan in the coming months, JP Pietersen and Schalk Burger, were not considered for the start of the competition. They have to report to their respective clubs next week.
“Obviously the squad can change during the course of the Rugby Championship and although JP and Schalk were not considered at this stage, they could still feature later in the competition,” said Meyer.
Injured players who were not available for selection after featuring in 2013 or earlier in 2014, are Flip van der Merwe (knee), Pieter-Steph du Toit (knee), Arno Botha (knee), Pierre Spies (bicep), Fourie du Preez (ankle) and Jaque Fourie (ankle).
The Springbok squad for the Castle Lager Rugby Championship 2014:
Willem Alberts (Cell C Sharks) Loose forward, 32 Test caps
Bakkies Botha (Toulon, France) Lock, 79 Test caps
Schalk Brits (Saracens, England) Hooker, 7 Test caps
Marcell Coetzee (Cell C Sharks) Loose forward, 16 Test caps
Damian de Allende (DHL Western Province) Centre/wing, uncapped
Lodewyk de Jager (Toyota FS Cheetahs) Lock, 3 Test caps
Jean de Villiers (DHL Western Province) Centre, 96 Test caps – captain
Bismarck du Plessis (Cell C Sharks) Hooker, 60 Test caps
Jannie du Plessis (Cell C Sharks) Prop, 54 Test caps
Eben Etzebeth (DHL Western Province) Lock, 23 Test caps
Bryan Habana (Toulon, France) Wing, 97 Test caps
Cornal Hendricks (Toyota FS Cheetahs) Wing, 3 Test caps
Francois Hougaard (Vodacom Blue Bulls) Scrumhalf, 28 Test caps
Patrick Lambie (Cell C Sharks) Flyhalf/fullback, 32 Test caps
Willie le Roux (Toyota FS Cheetahs) Fullback/wing, 15 Test caps
Francois Louw (Bath, England) Loose forward, 30 Test caps
Frans Malherbe (DHL Western Province) Prop, 2 Test caps
Victor Matfield (Vodacom Blue Bulls) Lock, 113 Test caps
Teboho ‘Oupa’ Mohoje (Toyota FS Cheetahs) Loose forward, 1 Test cap
Tendai Mtawarira (Cell C Sharks) Prop, 55 Test caps
Lwazi Mvovo (Cell C Sharks) Wing, 9 Test caps
Trevor Nyakane (Toyota FS Cheetahs) Prop, 4 Test caps
Ruan Pienaar (Ulster, N Ireland) Scrumhalf, 76 Test caps
Handré Pollard (Vodacom Blue Bulls) Flyhalf, 1 Test cap
Cobus Reinach (Cell C Sharks) Scrumhalf, uncapped
Jan Serfontein (Vodacom Blue Bulls) Centre, 12 Test caps
Gurthrö Steenkamp (Toulouse, France) Prop, 51 Test caps
Morné Steyn (Stade Francais, France) Flyhalf, 56 Test caps
Adriaan Strauss (Toyota FS Cheetahs) Hooker, 34 Test caps
Duane Vermeulen (DHL Western Province) No.8, 19 Test caps
